This is the forum for discussion of all cricketing issues and news. Here you will find frank analysis and opinion on subjects ranging from selection policies, favourite cricketers and match post-mortems right through to dressing room and cricket board fiascos.

Can't disagree with your side Baggers, maybe Wade or Carey as my keeper, but can't disagree with Peirson due to his captaincy, (Captain of the year).

Obviously the biggest losers of the year are the big 4 : Larkin, Henriques, Maddinson and Nevil. Darcy Short Tom Rogers and Ben McDermott were surprise failures for me, MacKin was also disappointing, Honestly wasn't overly impressed with Sayers either, one of his worst seasons 17 wickets @ 32. I would have liked to see J Richardson play more instead of holidaying in SA 18 wickets @ 30 doesn't cry out "pick me". Dalton didn't live up to much, disappointing. Cooper, Christian and Doolan coming to the end of their careers. Cartwright wasn't a big failure just didn't bowl much. Zampa disappointing as well, as was Agar in both departments.

For me ones to watch also include Matthew Kelly, Stoinis, Wildermuth, Heazlett....forget it I'll just say it, the entire Qld team, a bunch of no-names kids hosting the final, can't ask for much more.

Saddest moment, Douggie's retirement 11 wickets @ 32 in his final year, still better than Conway, Abbott, at nearly 37 the big guy still had it over some of the up and comers. Finished his career at No 21 sheffield shield wicket takers with 290 @ 28, excellent effort.

Can't disagree with your side Baggers, maybe Wade or Carey as my keeper, but can't disagree with Peirson due to his captaincy, (Captain of the year). Reason I gave him the nod Mike. First time skipper leads side to the final. George Bailey gets a special mention taking his Tigers to the final for first time in several years. I too was impressed with Mathew Kelly. Stoinis "one to watch"? Agar never had momentum after coming in late in season after injury. He is a much improved bowler and from his 80odd yesterday is still one of the sweetest strikers of a cricket ball we have. A big heart had Dougie no doubt about that. Ed Cowan played one season too many. Still his record is meritorious. 143 FC games @42..25 100s.. 225 hs. Never quite hit his straps at Test level. A good scrapper is how I best describe Ed...George Bailey has dropped form. Could he also announce his retirement after the final. Christian is also likely to hang up his boots. Blessed with so much natural talent not sure Dan got the most out of himself.

The Bulls only need a draw to claim the silverware. Those are words I hate hearing for a final. Can we expect a tedious drawn out go slow by QLD to ensure the draw. On the other hand a combination of the swinging Dukes ball, a pitch that's been under covers and the respective sides' attacking approaches could cancel that out and make for exciting viewing.

A delay due to a wet outfield at Allan Border Field. Wont be the same commmenting without you Mike or Mick too. Hoping the big fellar is recovering.

baggygreenmania wrote:The Bulls only need a draw to claim the silverware. Those are words I hate hearing for a final. Can we expect a tedious drawn out go slow by QLD to ensure the draw. On the other hand a combination of the swinging Dukes ball, a pitch that's been under covers and the respective sides' attacking approaches could cancel that out and make for exciting viewing.

A delay due to a wet outfield at Allan Border Field. Wont be the same commmenting without you Mike or Mick too. Hoping the big fellar is recovering.

baggygreenmania wrote:The Bulls only need a draw to claim the silverware. Those are words I hate hearing for a final. Can we expect a tedious drawn out go slow by QLD to ensure the draw. On the other hand a combination of the swinging Dukes ball, a pitch that's been under covers and the respective sides' attacking approaches could cancel that out and make for exciting viewing.

A delay due to a wet outfield at Allan Border Field. Wont be the same commmenting without you Mike or Mick too. Hoping the big fellar is recovering.

time to can the final

the Shield was more gripping when it was decided in the final round

I can remember only one good final...and that was a draw

The last three won by the Bushrangers have been big disappoinments and borefests.. So predictable with no excitement or tension. Why this ludicrous policy of allowing the first into the final needing only to draw to win the trophy?

How long does it take for the Super Sopper to do its thing. We have clear skies and still no cricket.

how high you build the ceiling ? what were your the rules for 6?you need to use metal entirely but not glass as a 6 might break it. that include any light fixtures in the middle if Gayle or Kohli batting for T20. maintenance costs would be astronomical. if a key light goes out by a 6, you interrupt the play till someone replaces a bulb broken by a 6? delay of game ? overs cut? third world or not, it’s not practical.

Going South wrote:how high you build the ceiling ? what were your the rules for 6?you need to use metal entirely but not glass as a 6 might break it. that include any light fixtures in the middle if Gayle or Kohli batting for T20. maintenance costs would be astronomical. if a key light goes out by a 6, you interrupt the play till someone replaces a bulb broken by a 6? delay of game ? overs cut? third world or not, it’s not practical.

I was thinking of the less expensive option of say transluscent sail cloth or such material covering the ground yet allowing in lite and air on the sides.

Last edited by baggygreenmania on Sat Mar 24, 2018 1:36 am, edited 1 time in total.

With an England Ashes on the horizon,it is important to know who prospered most from use of the Dukes ball this summer and who did not. In case of CA not using analytical data to determine this I will attempt to despite not having figures from each two parts of the Shield.

Doggett doing something you dont see too often. A r/a quick going round the wicket to a r/a batsman. It is paying dividends as he now has the only two wkts to fall after lunch. Tassie in some trouble now.

Good partnerships with the skipper anchoring things has the Tigers back on track leading into tea.

George Bailey's gutsy captains knock is ended by a run out.

What has happened to the live coverage?

Last edited by baggygreenmania on Sat Mar 24, 2018 6:06 am, edited 4 times in total.

The ball tampering in Cape Town has overshadowed the Shield final somewhat. The English Dukes ball has been good for revitalising Shield cricket. I advocate it be used for the entire 10 rounds and in all home Test matches from now on then the need to cheat to give the ball some life in order to take wickets would be negated.

Bulls most inform batsman Charlie Hemphrey is anchoring the Bulls response. He needs to turn this into a big one. Sam Heazlett has just gone. Plenty of starts by the Bulls. Paper talk this morning that Renshaw and Burns could be dragged from this final and on a plane to SA to cover for the absence of Smith and Warner and perhaps Bancroft from the last test.

I borrowed this from cricinfo. Many ways to tamper - Who used what?The Bancroft incident in Cape Town is not the first time a cricket ball has been tampered with using a foreign object. Can you match these objects with the players involved?http://www.espncricinfo.com/story/_/id/ ... -used-what

baggygreenmania wrote: I am still in shock as is much of Australia. "Play hard but fair" is the Australian motto. Smith, Warner & Co have trashed that.

the younger generation no longer know right from wrong because ethics are now a fluid concept thanks to a failing education system and de-Christianisation. There is no fear of moral consequences.

The thing that baffles me the most is how blatant it was with half dozen boundary cameras , stump mikes, CCTV looking on . In addition I expect the umpires have been told to be extra vigilant after the recent ball tampering allegation of Pat Cummins.. Total stupidity almost you could say deliberate as tho they wanted to be found out.

Last edited by baggygreenmania on Mon Mar 26, 2018 3:10 am, edited 1 time in total.

Reckon we know what the Bulls strategy is with skipper Peirson travelling at a 35 strike rate.. bat for as long as we can to use up as much time as we can, bore the many spectators to death with a draw at the end of the play. But hey..thats ok as we dont need to win to take the title. Another bloody ludicrous policy by CA.

Katto wrote:the younger generation no longer know right from wrong because ethics are now a fluid concept thanks to a failing education system and de-Christianisation. There is no fear of moral consequences.

The thing that baffles me the most is how blatant it was with half dozen boundary cameras , stump mikes, CCTV looking on . In addition I expect the umpires have been told to be extra vigilant after the recent ball tampering allegation of Pat Cummins.. Total stupidity almost you could say deliberate as tho they wanted to be found out.

They live in a bubble. The lack of self awareness and the level of delusion is what surprises me most.

baggygreenmania wrote: The thing that baffles me the most is how blatant it was with half dozen boundary cameras , stump mikes, CCTV looking on . In addition I expect the umpires have been told to be extra vigilant after the recent ball tampering allegation of Pat Cummins.. Total stupidity..you could almost say deliberate as tho they wanted to be found out.

They live in a bubble. The lack of self awareness and the level of delusion is what surprises me most.

Is there a win at all costs mentality to maintain the high profile of test cricket?. And who do we blame for this..the players themselves or the coaching staff. Is admin at fault. That nong Howard for instance. Whatever the reason this sad episode will certainly not help Test crickets profile.

Katto wrote:They live in a bubble. The lack of self awareness and the level of delusion is what surprises me most.

Is there a win at all costs mentality to maintain the high profile of test cricket?. And who do we blame for this..the players themselves or the coaching staff. Is admin at fault. That nong Howard for instance. Whatever the reason this sad episode will certainly not help Test crickets profile.

One can only speculate on what drove them to do it. Maybe the CCTV episode and the Rabada episode caused Smith to snap and do anything to win because he was so angry at how everything unfolded after the first test and thought it was justified.

baggygreenmania wrote: Is there a win at all costs mentality to maintain the high profile of test cricket?. And who do we blame for this..the players themselves or the coaching staff. Is admin at fault. That nong Howard for instance. Whatever the reason this sad episode will certainly not help Test crickets profile.

One can only speculate on what drove them to do it. Maybe the CCTV episode and the Rabada episode caused Smith to snap and do anything to win because he was so angry at how everything unfolded after the first test and thought it was justified.

Last example is a good point. Smithy said publicly he was pissed off over the Rabada let off. Did he feel his integrity was being questioned. So Rabada was free again to continue hitting us with his reverse swing which incidently no one has questioned. Lets face it most of his wickets this series have come later in the innings with an old and worn ball.

Last edited by baggygreenmania on Mon Mar 26, 2018 5:40 am, edited 3 times in total.

Katto wrote:One can only speculate on what drove them to do it. Maybe the CCTV episode and the Rabada episode caused Smith to snap and do anything to win because he was so angry at how everything unfolded after the first test and thought it was justified.

Last example is a good point.Smithy said publicly he was pissed off over the Rabada let off. Was his integrity at stake. Well now his integrity is shot to bits.

The more I think about the more I reckon Smith snapped when Rabada shoulder charged him. Where is the respect for the Australian cricket captain. Could that be the moment this plan was hatched. We can speculate all we like. The truth will come out shortly and all will be revealed.

baggygreenmania wrote:The more I think about the more I reckon Smith snapped when Rabada shoulder charged him. Where is the respect for the Australian cricket captain. Could that be the moment this plan was hatched. We can speculate all we like. The truth will come out shortly and all will be revealed.

Hopefully we'll get the truth but often things like this are obfuscated. In sport and politics moreso.

A true mark of leadership and maturity is the understanding that life isn't always fair and to move on and play with the cards you're dealt rather than trying to redress the balance by 'justified' cheating.

well said katto. i hate to see folks “justify” this BLATANT cheating, not just players but fans like us also. It irked me earlier when certain “fans” here in CF try to justify ball tampering as in Pakistani did it, BCCI players did it (allegedly?) etc some decades back, So its OK for Australians to do ball tampering TODAY. no big deal sayers?? no no. it is a BIG DEAL. They started the downfall down the spiral. If ACB management does not take STRONG steps and take ACTION it’s gonna be even worse in the coming years. NIP IT IN THE BUD. take some ACTION in-house, not just ICC eye-wash punishment. get some HEADS ROLLING. Make them all fear ! Don’t become LAUGHING STOCK of world cricket community.

bolero wrote:To me what was disturbing is make Bancroft the fall guy ? He has just started his career and was made the sacrificial lamb in this sordid episode.

Well Smith is the fall guy according to the ICC because he got suspended.Bancroft is 25 though, he's not a kid... he should be old enough to know right from wrong and nobody forced him to take part in it. He had choices.

I just wish the next few days will pass quickly because I can't wait for the CA inquiry findings and subsequent actions

bolero wrote:To me what was disturbing is make Bancroft the fall guy ? He has just started his career and was made the sacrificial lamb in this sordid episode.

Well Smith is the fall guy according to the ICC because he got suspended.Bancroft is 25 though, he's not a kid... he should be old enough to know right from wrong and nobody forced him to take part in it. He had choices.

I just wish the next few days will pass quickly because I can't wait for the CA inquiry findings and subsequent actions

Ed Cowan on the Bill & Boz show labeled team manager Pat Howard as Teflon Pat. Nothing sticks to Pat.Surely he's also part of the problem. The fact he's mates with Sutherland just reinforces the boys club at CA, which is neither merit nor performance based at the management level.

Katto wrote:Ed Cowan on the Bill & Boz show labeled team manager Pat Howard as Teflon Pat. Nothing sticks to Pat.Surely he's also part of the problem. The fact he's mates with Sutherland just reinforces the boys club at CA, which is neither merit nor performance based at the management level.

Good on you Ed. What more juicy tidbits may Ed reveal now he is not under the yoke of his former masters.

Katto wrote:Well Smith is the fall guy according to the ICC because he got suspended.Bancroft is 25 though, he's not a kid... he should be old enough to know right from wrong and nobody forced him to take part in it. He had choices.

I just wish the next few days will pass quickly because I can't wait for the CA inquiry findings and subsequent actions

Yes, he is responsible for what he did. Facing the music now.

Oh shock..horror. As if we did not already know this. Warner was just as complicite as Smith and will not play in fourth Test. Talk of a one year ban on the both. That is too much even but talk of a life ban is ridiculous IMO. Lehmann's silence is deafening. Waiting for him to fall on his sword.

Last edited by baggygreenmania on Mon Mar 26, 2018 10:48 pm, edited 1 time in total.

bolero wrote:To me what was disturbing is make Bancroft the fall guy ? He has just started his career and was made the sacrificial lamb in this sordid episode.

I heard Bancroft put up his hand to be "the fall guy" as you put it bolero. He went into this with his eyes wide open. Guilty as charged. But he will not face suspension. Just face the ignomy of a loss of reputation.

Backing up my statement this AB Field deck is now a batting paradise. Doolan actually has a half century. Expecting Tigers skipper George Bailey to breath new life back into this final by declaring and giving the Bulls 250/300 to win. Also expecting the Bulls to spoil the party and bat out the game for a draw.

Rain has spoiled the show so plans and strategies will now be changed. Rain is expected to clear at around 2pm so still plenty of time for a result. 2.10 pm Brissie time. Umpires inspecting the ground.. sunny now.. play should be back underway shortly.

Last edited by baggygreenmania on Tue Mar 27, 2018 4:22 am, edited 1 time in total.

baggygreenmania wrote:Backing up my statement this AB Field deck is now a batting paradise. Doolan actually has a half century. Expecting Tigers skipper George Bailey to breath new life back into this final by declaring and giving the Bulls 250/300 to win. Also expecting the Bulls to spoil the party and bat out the game for a draw.

Rain has spoiled the show so plans and strategies will now be changed. Rain is expected to clear at around 2pm so still plenty of time for a result.

I'm shocked that the team that only needs to draw to win the Sheffield Shield staged the final on a batting paradise!!!

I'm shocked that the team that only needs to draw to win the Sheffield Shield staged the final on a batting paradise!!!

Reckon they factored in the inclement weather too. Surely a batting friendly surface is precisely what the Bulls wanted as they can bat and bat for a draw. Took them the best part of two days to post their only score.. that is slow. Tailenders were hitting 50s it was that benign.

Last edited by baggygreenmania on Tue Mar 27, 2018 4:55 am, edited 1 time in total.

this almost has a World Series Cricket fracture feel to it with all the stand-ins ready to go

It definitely does. Where is Kerry Packer? Ok quiz time.. who will be the replacement batsmen, will we need replacement quicks for Starc and Hazlewood. Lehmann should resign.. Alfie Langer is favorite.. outsiders are Bailey and Clarke. Even mention of Ponting too. That surprises me as Ricky has not even commited as T20 coach. Timmy Paine should be the next skipper.

this almost has a World Series Cricket fracture feel to it with all the stand-ins ready to go

It definitely does. Where is Kerry Packer? Ok quiz time.. who will be the replacement batsmen, will we need replacement quicks for Starc and Hazlewood. Lehmann should resign.. Alfie Langer is favorite.. outsiders are Bailey and Clarke. Even mention of Ponting too. That surprises me as Ricky has not even commited as T20 coach. Timmy Paine should be the next skipper.